ST. CROIX — The VIPD offensive continues following Police Commissioner Delroy Richards’ announcement of increased gun possession arrests and stepped-up patrol efforts, as the force moves to quell the rise in criminal activity territory-wide.
On Wednesday morning, at about 10:50 a.m. during a routine traffic stop, 18-year-old Duval Briscoe of Queen Street, was arrested and charged with possession of an unauthorized firearm, according to VIPD Public Information Officer Kevin Jackson.
The traffic stop was conducted in the vicinity of the Church of God Academy located in Peter’s Rest.
Unable to make bail of $25,000, Briscoe was remanded to the Bureau of Corrections pending his advise-of-rights hearing.
At the press conference, held on July 15, Richards, along with St. Croix Police Chief Arthur Hector, Sr., revealed that the force had confiscated 45 illegal guns territory-wide since January.
“We have aggressively, with the resources that we have, confront, we have targeted — we have arrested as much as we possibly can,” Richards said. With guns on display on a table as proof of the VIPD’s efforts, the commissioner said “these weapons that you see on the table are weapons that have been confiscated from January to now.”
Richards said the VIPD has been successful in its efforts to “identify possible persons of interest on a number of high profile cases, and we have began to utilize all our crime-fighting capabilities.” The commissioner, who has a long leadership history in both the private and public sectors, said the VIPD has begun the process of filling positions on the cold case squad in an effort to solve cases that residents might think the force has ignored.
“All major cases are being pursued to the extent that we have returned experience detectives to the cold case squad,” Richards said.
Feature Image: Mugshot of Duval Briscoe.
Tags: gun possession arrest, st. croix arrest
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